I know that we are only 2 days away from Christmas but I thought I’d post some last minute vegan/veggie-friendly options in case you’re struggling to come up with some food ideas. Truthfully, I’m not feeling festive at all this year, but what I’m excited for is cooking Christmas food as it’s my first year of being a vegetarian/vegan during this festive period. I won’t babble on with my usual bullshit and get straight to the point!

BBC Good Food is like my recipe bible, it’s full of amazing food that’s easy to cook and tastes incredible! This recipe isn’t vegan friendly – however, you can easily substitute the dairy products in this to tailor it to your dietary needs. I’m making it for my whole family as mum and I in particular adore mushrooms.

I was SO happy when Jamie Oliver put this recipe up on his YouTube because I’m super excited to make this! This seems the kind of thing that everyone would enjoy, unless you’re allergic to nuts of course… Either way it’s a perfect mix of something new/different but feels like a Christmassy dish at the same time! I’ll also be substituting pumpkin seeds for chestnuts in this recipe as my mum has bought too many and wants me to do ‘something about them’.

Main:

Roasted Aubergine With Cornbread Stuffing

Once again, I shall be substituting the cornbread stuffing with a traditional sage and onion stuffing (because I’m a lazy bitch… But also because I like the taste of it) This will be perfect for all the family as stuffed aubergines are way more ‘indie’ than stuffed peppers but taste just as good.

Drink:

Mulled ‘Wine’

Since my grandma is diabetic and I tend not to drink anyway (unless I’m going out) I thought that a healthier alternative that suits my grandma’s dietary needs as well as mine would be a nice finish to the suggestions I have made above. This is a recipe by a YouTuber Niomi Smart, who I’ve previously mentioned in my ‘Massive Healthy food haul’ blog post, and who has become one of my favourite people to follow for vegan/healthy recipe ideas as she lives in the UK and introduces people like myself to certain products that are accessible to me in the UK. Either way, I hope you try out this recipe because I sure shall be enjoying drinking this on Christmas day.

I hope I might’ve helped some of you who, like myself, are going to be doing some last minute food shopping before the big day. Happy holidays everybody!

I’m always looking for new recipes in order to spice up (literally) my diet and an easy one-pot dish is always hassle-free, easy and enjoyable to make! I found this when looking up videos of Karlie Kloss‘ catwalk (as you do) and stumbled upon this – a perfect vegan/vegetarian dish in which all the veg could be substituted to whatever veg you prefer. The more greens you put into the dish, the better it gets! I become a dangerous girl when I get my hands on cayenne pepper, however, this recipe was very spicy even for me, if you want to tone it down and make it medium-spicy then I’d recommend using half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, but if you want to just have a slight kick I’d recommend using less than a quarter of a teaspoon.

The recipe is really easy to follow and serves 4-5.

Recipe

1 Onion

2 Tbsp Canola Oil

3 Tbsp Ginger

3 Garlic Cloves

1 Tbsp Ground Coriander

1 Tsp Turmeric

1 Tsp Cayenne Pepper (hell no, I really recommend half a tsp)

1 Tbsp Cumin

1 Tbsp Tomato Paste

2 Cups Vegetable Stock

1 Cup Coconut Milk (I used a reduced-fat version)

1 Stick Cinnamon

1 Pinch Salt

1 Tbsp Pepper

2 Tomatoes

2 Carrots

1/2 Head Cauliflower

2/3 Butternut Squash (I used 1 big sweet potato, delicious!)

1 Can Chickpeas

4 Cups Spinach

1/2 Lime Juice

1 Pinch Coriander

You can certainly add some chicken or any other meat to it if you are a meat lover, but I really recommend trying out the original veggie version – I promise you will love it!

This is the video from which I found out the recipe – WELL DUNN with Jourdan Dunn

There is also a recipe for Karlie’s Kookies which I haven’t had the chance to bake myself yet, but if you have a sweet tooth like me and are looking for a healthier alternative to enjoy your treats then I’d recommend making them as well!